It’s burning out there. And with the sultry weather comes the problem of sweat and body odour. Though it isn’t necessary that you will smell bad whenever you are sweating.
What is body odour?
Body odour is the smell your body releases when sweat comes into contact with your body’s bacteria. Bacteria is the villain behind making your sweat smelly. The most common affected areas are the armpits, groin, and the pubic area.
While body odour is common in most people, the extent of odour depends from person to person. A person may be more prone to body odour if they are overweight, eat certain types of foods, have certain prior health conditions or are under stress.
Causes for body odour
A number of factors like diet, sex, health, and medication contribute to body odor, but the major contribution comes from bacterial activity on skin and gland secretions. There are three types of sweat glands in the human body: sebaceous glands, eccrine sweat glands, and apocrine sweat glands.
Body odour typically results from the apocrine sweat glands from which most chemical compounds are secreted that the microbiota present on the skin further processes into the substances that cause odour. Certain areas like the underarm areas, the navel area, the neck, the genitals, and behind the ears are more prone to this.
How does diet play a role in body odour?
Body odour can be largely affected by a poor diet. Potent ingredients such as chilly, garlic, onion, and so on can give the sweat a pungent odour. A protein-rich diet is also believed to be a cause of body odour.
If a person is consuming high-levels of particular food items, foul-smelling compounds they contain may be excreted through your sweat glands to give an unpleasant odour. Those compounds called VOCs or volatile organic compounds, can produce some particularly pungent sweat, according to a New York-based dermatological study.
Foods that can improve body odour
Increasing your intake of certain nutrients helps you reduce odours. Try getting plenty of these in your diet, and see the difference.
Leafy-green vegetables: Spinach, kale, lettuce, arugula and other leafy greens contain high levels of chlorophyll, which can neutralise odour-inducing components.
Citrus fruits: Citrus fruits like lemons, oranges, limes, grapefruits etc contain citric acid that encourage the passage of water through the body that minimises toxins.
Fibre-rich foods: Food items like lentils, peas, and various kinds of beans contain high amounts of fibre. Ensure you are eating enough of these as it facilitates digestion.
Herbal teas: Herbal teas like green tea, chamomile tea improve digestion hence preventing unwanted residuals in the gut which can cause bad odour. Flavoured teas like a jasmine or peppermint tea can help you smell fresher quickly.
